NASCAR's wild ride

This Article Is Sponsored By:
www.MotorCityAutoParts.com

The Joe Gibbs Racing to Toyota deal announced on Wednesday is not only a magnitude 7.5 on the NASCAR Richter Scale but just the latest in a series of magnitude 7.5 quakes that have shaken NASCAR to its foundation this tumultuous season.

Going into 2007, many in the sport figured the year would be a watershed what with the new car, the debut of Juan Pablo Montoya, an adjustment to the playoff parameters, the return of ESPN and the partnership with Sirius Satellite Radio. But no one figured on the other shockers: the death of long-time leader and founding family scion Bill France Jr., Bobby Hamilton and Benny Parsons; Dale Earnhardt Jr. leaving Dale Earnhardt Inc.; Kyle Busch leaving Hendrick Motorsports; a myriad mergers and acquisitions and so on and so forth.

And to think, counting Saturday night's show at Richmond, the final 11 Nextel Cup races and the crowning of a new champion still remain. Reach up and pull those belts tight one more time. It should be an interesting ride . . . not to say that the previous eight months haven't been.

Let's review:


Jan. 8: Hamilton dies. Nextel Cup preseason testing begins at Daytona and word filters out about the cancer-related death of former NASCAR Craftsman Truck champion and Winston Cup race winner Bobby Hamilton.


Jan. 15: Parsons dies. The second week of testing begins and the NASCAR world is shaken by the cancer-related death of former Winston Cup and Daytona 500 champion Benny Parsons, who made as much of a name for himself as a popular TV analyst as he did as a racer.


Feb. 8: I want 51 percent. Dale Earnhardt Jr. steals the show at the annual Daytona 500 media day by proclaiming his bargaining position for a new contract with the company that bears the name of his late father, seven-time champion Dale Earnhardt includes majority ownership.


Feb. 11: Cheating erupts. Earnhardt remains the story for exactly four days until Michael Waltrip is busted for cheating before 500 qualifying, setting off a chain of rule breaking not seen at the big track in years. Also busted are the Roush Racing car of Matt Kenseth and all three Evernham Motorsports cars. In total, five crew chiefs are suspended and a record fine slapped on Waltrip.


Feb. 15: The story continues. Cheating remains the story even through the first of the two 500 qualifying races as Waltrip qualifies for the 500. It becomes even a bigger story after the second when the winning car of Jeff Gordon is found to be in violation of minimum height requirements due to what NASCAR called an inadvertent error. Gordon is relegated to the rear for the 500.


Feb. 15. Roush Red Sox. Lost in the cheating scandals is the formal announcement of the union between Roush Racing and the Fenway Sports Group that owns the Boston Red Sox, a move that initiates a wave of outside investment in NASCAR heretofore never seen.


Feb. 18: Racing, finally. The green flag finally waves for the 49th 500 and Kevin Harvick wins a race for the ages, nipping Mark Martin at the finish line in the cold darkness.


Fast forward to March 25: Foot in mouth. NASCAR's new Car of Tomorrow race car debuts at Bristol, Kyle Busch wins and proclaims on national TV that the car (stinks).


April 24: Stewart detonates. Speaking on his Sirius Satellite Radio talk show, Tony Stewart goes public with unprecedented, stinging criticism of NASCAR over debris cautions, race manipulation and "playing God," but he sees the light after a stern conversation. The whole episode is newsworthy because it is the first time a driver, normally under NASCAR's thumb, dares say out loud what is whispered in the garage.


May 10: See ya. Dale Earnhardt Jr. announces the end of negotiations for a new contract with DEI, proclaiming himself a free agent, setting off the most frenzied bidding war in the sport's history. His fanatically loyal fan base begins to panic, heralding the waves of hysteria to follow.


June 4: France dies. The word of the death of Bill France Jr. is released during the rain-delayed running of the season's first Dover race. France's passing heralds the end of an era marked by what many called his benevolent dictatorship at the sport's helm. No one can doubt though he led the sport through times of tremendous growth and upheaval especially in the wake of the 2001 death of Dale Earnhardt.


June 13: The prize is landed. Dale Earnhardt Jr. announces he has signed a five-year deal to drive for Hendrick Motorsports beginning in 2008. Many of his fans revolt. Also at the press conference, it is announced Earnhardt will replace Kyle Busch, setting off another round of frenzied bidding.


July 7: Nice to know you, Nextel. NASCAR announces the second new title sponsor of its elite series in four seasons, re-branding the Nextel Cup Series to the Sprint Series beginning in 2008. In case you forgot, Nextel replaced Winston, title sponsor for 33 seasons, beginning with the 2004 season which also heralded the arrival of the Chase to the Nextel Cup championship format.

Speaking of branding, the second-tier Busch Series loses its title sponsor, Busch beer and brewer Anhueser-Busch at the end of the 2007 season after a 25-year run. A new sponsor remains elusive despite NASCAR and broadcaster ESPN/ABC combing through the marketplace for a corporation willing to part with the rumored $15 million or so fee which is reported to be down from the $30 million NASCAR originally was seeking.


July 9: Pepsi goes flat. International Speedway Corp. ends a 49-year partnership with Pepsi by awarding to Coke pouring rights at Daytona and several tracks in 2008 and its entire roster of properties once all the Pepsi contracts expire. Once again loyalty and tradition get trumped and trampeled.


July 13: Bye, bye Bud. Hendrick Motorsports announces Budweiser will not sponsor Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2008. The collectible and memorabilia markets panic not to mention legions of red shirt, jacket, hoodie, hat, beer mug, coffee cup, etc., owning fans.


July 25: Who needs Junior? DEI announces acquisition of Ginn Racing, adding veteran Mark Martin and newcomers Aric Almirola and Regan Smith to the lineup of Martin Truex Jr., Paul Menard and the soon-to-be-departing Dale Earnhardt Jr. and cutting loose veteran drivers Sterling Marlin and Joe Nemechek. The move signals DEI's intention to move on and not fold its tent over the loss of the sport's most popular driver.


July 27: Huh? Robert Yates Racing partners with Newman-Haas of Champ Car World Series forming Yates/Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing, one of the sport's longer names. Of all the mergers and partnerships, this one elicits the most quizzical looks since it united a struggling NASCAR team and a dominant team in a struggling open-wheel series which has little in common with a stock car series.


Aug. 6: Ray Evernham sells majority ownership to Montreal Canadiens owner and businessman Gordon Gillette, forming Gillette Evernham Motorsports. The sale allows Evernham to concentrate on his strength: making his cars competitive.


Aug. 15: All those inane Dale Earnhardt Jr. commercials come true when the crown prince announces his evil stepmother and DEI boss Teresa Earnhardt has refused to part with the No. 8 meaning Junior will have a new number for 2008. Woe be all those wearers of the No. 8 tattoos.


Aug. 21: Ricky Rudd, second all-time in starts, announces his retirement at the end of t the 2007 season, leaving a huge hole at Yates and a bigger hole in the sport where wizened old-timers are as rare as a sponsored going unnamed in an interview. Rudd goes on to separate his shoulder at California, meaning his retirement could come sooner than season's end.


Sept. 2: Hall of Fame Racing of NFL Hall of Famers Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman fame sells controlling interest to Arizona Diamondbacks executives Jeff Moorad and Tom Garfinkel, creating yet another NASCAR-baseball union and giving bottom-line oriented, performance-based and franchise-wise businessmen yet more entrée into racing. Anyone see a trend here?


Sept. 5: Joe Gibbs shocks NASCAR fans by announcing his jump to Toyota. The reactionary wing of the sport's fan base goes ballistic. Not only is Toyota in NASCAR but now the sport's most American -- outspoken, frank, candid, petulant, rebellious, successful -- driver in Tony Stewart is one of its drivers. Oh, the humanity.

This Article Is Sponsored By:
www.MotorCityAutoParts.com

For More Information About This Article Please Email:
Trevor@MotorCityAutoParts.com

Article Number: 000029